Chapter Nine: Marriage Counseling

Purdey sniffed the air as she woke the next morning, a tempting aroma wafting its way under the shelter. Pushing herself up on one elbow, she looked toward the fire and saw MacGyver taking something out of a makeshift oven on a tray that looked like it might have begun its days as a street sign.

Curious, Purdey got up and padded toward the fire, rubbing the place where one of the pine boughs had been digging into her side.

MacGyver looked up at her approach. "Mornin'."

Purdey smiled. "Good morning. What are those?"

"Stuffed mushrooms," MacGyver responded, holding out the tray. "Want one?"

Hungry and tempted by the appetizing aroma, Purdey reached out to take one, then hesitated. "Are you sure they're mushrooms and not toadstools?"

MacGyver grinned. "Yup."

"How do you know?"

"Been eatin' mushrooms for over fifteen years, and never made a mistake yet. 'Course, if ya don't wanna risk it, that means more for me an' Gambit." He winked at her as he reached for one of the fat mushrooms and bit off a third of it. "Mm. Delicious."

Purdey slowly took a mushroom, watching MacGyver as if she half expected him to keel over. At last she couldn't resist a small bite, and a startled expression crossed her face. "Oh! These are good!"

"You don't have to sound so surprised," MacGyver teased as she finished the rest quickly, apparently not believing toadstools would have a pleasant flavor, and licked her fingers before reaching for another.

"Four each?" she questioned.

"Yup."

He frowned slightly as he saw the light once more glinting off the ring she wore, and recalled how he had seen her nestle against Gambit in the shelter the night before — and not just for warmth, he somehow felt sure.

"Purdey…maybe it's none of my business…but I can't help noticing how…close you and Gambit are."

"We go way back," Purdey agreed.

"Yeah…but…do you think your husband would like it if he knew how…friendly you two are?"

Purdey gave him a brilliant smile. "What makes you think he doesn't?"

"An' what about Gambit's wife?" MacGyver persisted.

Purdey's smile widened. "Oh, I'm sure she doesn't mind."

A muscle twitched under MacGyver's eye in distaste, but he could think of nothing further to say.

Purdey reached out and gave his shoulder a motherly pat. "I appreciate the concern, but how about you let Gambit and me worry about our own affairs, hmm?"

"Yeah…sure," MacGyver muttered, hating the feeling of being patronized.

"Someone mention my name?" Gambit asked with a yawn as he approached the fire.

"Hey, sleepyhead," Purdey greeted him. "Come sit down before all the mushrooms are gone."

"Mushrooms?" Gambit questioned, sitting beside Purdey.

MacGyver grinned, offering him the tray. "Don't worry; we saved ya your share."

Gambit accepted a mushroom and eyed it speculatively. "You made these, not Purdey?"

"Gambit!" Purdey protested.

"Sorry, Purdey-girl, but you know you wouldn't recognize a toadstool if it jumped up and bit you."

"Well, Mac picked these; they're safe," Purdey assured him, crossing her arms in pretended irritation.

Gambit winked at her and quickly polished off the remaining mushrooms. "Looks like we're stranded in the woods with the right person, then."

MacGyver leaned back lazily. "I've never gone hungry in the forest yet," he remarked.

"Are we stranded?" Purdey asked seriously.

MacGyver pushed himself to sit upright. "Dunno. Let's have a look at that map in my jacket, Purdey."

Purdey investigated the pockets of the jacket she still wore and pulled out the map MacGyver had taken from the car. "Here."

"Thanks." MacGyver spread the map open on a rock and ran his finger along it. "Looks like we're about…here."

Gambit shifted closer to see as well. "If we could make it to that airport, we'd probably be home free," he remarked.

Purdey got up and came to stand behind them, looking over both their shoulders. "That's twenty miles away!" she protested. "We'd never make it on foot without the Stasi picking us up."

"By road, no," MacGyver agreed. "But cross-country looks like only about five miles; they wouldn't be looking for us, and depending on the terrain, we could make it by lunchtime."

"Or wander around in there for a very long time," Gambit remarked dubiously. "I don't know about you, but I didn't happen to bring a compass with me."

MacGyver grinned and unstrapped his wristwatch. "Nope, but it's a sunny day, so this is just as good." Aligning the hour hand to point at the sun, he quickly estimated the halfway point between the hour and noon. "That would be north, so we want to head…that way."

Purdey and Gambit looked at each other, and MacGyver got to his feet. "Anyway, I'm goin'; you folks can stay here if you'd rather."

Once more Purdey and Gambit exchanged glances. But MacGyver's tone was so confident there seemed to be no choice but to follow his lead.

Next chapter coming next week!

I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!

Please note that I have only minimal internet access, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. (But they are much appreciated, even if you're reading this story long after I originally post it!) If you have questions regarding my MacGyver or Avengers alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie